Chris Kunitz has called it a career.
4 Stanley Cups.
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) July 30, 2019
3 in Pittsburgh.
2OT goal we'll never forget.
1 incredible career.
Congratulations on your retirement, Kuni! pic.twitter.com/55X4Xi8GIV
Kunitz was a staple on Sidney Crosby's left wing and one of the most productive Penguins of the Crosby/Malkin era. There is no doubt playing with Crosby is an advantage, but Kunitz is viewed by some as a passenger and I don't subscribe to that theory. He was very good in his own right. The passenger narrative started because people were angry about him making the 2014 Canadian Olympic team. This caused backlash that he is only a product of Crosby. The thing is he was a very consistent top six winger even before coming to the Penguins. He did after all win a Stanley Cup playing top six minutes with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007 on a line with Teemu Selanne and Andy McDonald. He also was Malkin's left winger the only year Malkin won the Hart Trophy.
In the analytics era (2007-19) he ranked as the following
1.92 points 60 at 5v5 (28th) 54.55 CF% (8th) 54.65 xGF% (8th)
Not too bad for a passenger. This data includes his age 38 and 39 seasons with Tampa Bay and Chicago.
If you take his Anaheim and Pittsburgh only samples he jumps to 1.98 points per 60 and 20th overall among players with 9,000 minutes played. He did what he needed to do with the minutes he was given.
Somebody had to play with Sidney Crosby and the person who worked the best was Chris Kunitz. Right wingers came and went, but Kunitz was a staple for almost the entirety of his tenure with the Penguins. The #wingerforsid hashtag was never about Kunitz. He produced at a high level.
Kunitz did so many things well that contributed to Sidney Crosby's success. His tenacity and mind for the game was a great combination. Kunitz was always hard on the forecheck. When he would win battles he was able to manipulate time and space and play pucks both tape to tape and in areas for teammates to skate into to, many times to Crosby. This created extended zone time and more opportunities for Crosby to get touches on the puck in good to great areas of the ice. Kunitz's power game was harnessed and had finesse. A combination not a ton of players have.
One of my favorite examples is the game winning goal of the 2009 Stanley Cup Final in Game 7.
The following information is from 2014-18 so not Kunitz's prime. These are his 35+ years in the league.
In a league where 24-26 are the prime years having a chart looking like that a decade later is the sign of an excellent player.
For an undrafted player out of Ferris State he carved out quite the career. He was one of the most important Penguins during one of their most successful eras. His play spoke for itself. He was good in his own right.
Thanks for reading!